Q: Is there any chance that rookie Tim Tebow will be a starting quarterback this year?

A: This is easily the most-asked question among Broncos fans who have taken the time to write these days.

If Kyle Orton were injured, Tebow would likely be the one to replace him. Broncos coach Josh McDaniels has said that publicly, and Tebow has been in that position as the team’s No. 2 quarterback for much of the season.

McDaniels has been reluctant to play Tebow during some late-game situations — the big win over the Chiefs or the huge loss to the Raiders are the biggest bones of contention among fans — in large part because McDaniels has a struggling team that he’s trying to get back on track.

That means Orton is the Broncos’ best weapon to move the ball, score points and build confidence.

McDaniels is, after all, trying to show Broncos management some progress to keep his job in its current form. He doesn’t want to lose personnel power or be replaced, some or all of which could happen if his 3-7 team doesn’t show some fire down the stretch.

If Tebow is the best option, the coaches who see him in practice every week would put him in the lineup. And to tee Tebow up against any of the four teams remaining on the Broncos’ schedule that are still trying to make the playoffs would be a difficult situation for him.

Also, no matter how quickly people want to devalue or minimize what Orton has done this season because they’re in such a hurry to see Tebow play regularly, Orton is considered the Broncos’ best offensive player by personnel people across the NFL.

Orton has shown plenty of arm strength and has made the throws elite quarterbacks make. He’s not the most mobile guy, and some say he’s turned the ball over too much. But Orton has turned it over far fewer times than a lot of guys with better running games, more experienced offensive lines or defenses that aren’t tied for 30th in the league in points allowed. Orton is one of three quarterbacks who have thrown for 3,000 yards after 10 games this season — the Colts’ Peyton Manning and the Chargers’ Philip Rivers are the others — and he’s thrown the fewest interceptions (six) of those three.

So as long as McDaniels is telling the Broncos they have to be accountable and play to win, it’s difficult for him to then turn around and say the best way to do that is to pull Orton off the field.

As for whether he would start Tebow when the Broncos are mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, McDaniels said Tuesday he hadn’t considered that yet. “We’ll think about that when that happens,” he said.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Tyreek Hill didn’t know what to do when he started hearing thousands of people in Arrowhead Stadium chanting his name, even as he stood all alone on the frozen turf waiting for the punt.